Air cleaner, etc.



May 15, 1951 J. A. DEMONET ETAL 2,552,887

AIR CLEANER ETC.

Filed Aug. 26, 1946 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN V EN TORS JULES A. DEMET and WILLIAM HOWARD BY TTORNEYS Patented May 15, 1951 OFFICE AIR CLEANER, ETC.

Jules A. Demonet, Royal Oak, Mich., and William Howard, Richmond, Va.

Application August 26, 1946, Serial No. 692,992

2 Claims. l

This invention relates as indicated to air cleaners and more particularly to devices of the nature employed to cleanse the air supplied to the carburetor intakes of internal combustion engines.

Air cleaners for this purpose have long been known and a wide variety of devices has been employed. None has been found entirely satisfactory. Perhaps the type most commonly in use at the present time is that employing a copper mesh lter through which the air is drawn. Such lters may comprise a plurality of layersl of mesh with perhaps other materials such as steel wool held therebetween and it has been common practice to soak or spray such lters with oil or other liquid adapted to catch and retain dirt particles carried by the air. Periodically such iilters must be removed `and washed or replaced by new filters. Another type of device known to the art utilizes a plurality of baiile walls to form a long and tortuous passage for the air, the dirt particles being collected on the oiled surfaces of such baffles.

A number of difficulties have been encountered in the use of air cleaners of the type known to the prior art. Where filters of the copper mesh type are employed, there is undue restriction to the iiow of air if effective cleaning action is to be obtained. As the mesh becomes saturated with dirt, this trouble is intensied and Iwith the increase in restriction, subsequent air borne dirt tends to blast previously accumulated dirt from the mesh.. The high velocity of the air passing through the mesh lter may also cause excessive turbulence and tend to cause pull-over of oil from the reservoir usually provided in the lower portion of such devices. In certain arrangements and with cetain types of mesh, the oil with which it has been wet tends to drain off in a relatively short period of time, greatly reducing the eiTectiveness of the lter.

It is, therefore, a principal object of our invention to provide an air cleaner in which the ilow of .air to the carburetor of an internal combustion engine or a place of inhabitation, for example, is not unduly restricted.

Another object is to provide an air cleaner which is substantially self-cleansing and does not tend to become clogged with dirt.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a device of the type described which is constructed to facilitate ready inspection and servicing.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, said invention then comprises the features hereinafter fully described and particu- 2 larly pointed out in the claims, the following description and the annexed drawings setting forth in detail certain illustrative embodiments of the invention, these being indicative, however, of but a few of the various ways in which the principle of the invention may be employed.

In said annexed drawings:

Fig. l is a vertical sectional view taken alonel the line l-I of Fig. 2 of a preferred form of the device of our invention;

Fig. 2 is a top view of this form of the device with one-half cut away in section along the line 2--2 on Fig. l;

Fig. 3 is a side elevational View of another form of our device with one side broken away along the line 3-3 on Fig. 4 to show the internal construction; and

Fig. 4 is a top View of the form of device illustrated in Fig. 3 with a portion cut away in section along the line lle-l of Fig. 3 to better show an arrangement of certain of the elements.

Referring now more specifically to such drawings and particularly Figs. l and 2 thereof, the lower portion of this preferred forni of our device may desirably comprise an annular receptacle l of glass or transparent plastic seated on annular flange 2 extending radially outward from inner tubular member 3. An inverted spider 4 is attached as by spot welding to the inner surface of said tubular member 3. A bath 5 or a liquid such as oil adapted to withstand high temperatures and catch and retain dirt particles is pro vided in the lower portion of said receptacle I. A substantially air tight cover i5 is positioned above said receptacle and attached to the upper portion of said spider 4 by means of a bolt l and Wing nut 8. The outer periphery of said cover carries a depending ange 9, which, together with the turned down lip le of receptacle l, provides a protected peripheral inlet for the air to be cleansed with a minimum of turbulence being imparted to the air iiow. Shelf member Il in the form of an annulus is xed interiorly of said cover t and carries a depending circular baille member |22. Between said baiile and the inner periphery of container l are disposed a plurality of closely spaced cotton wicks I3 of substantially circular cross section mounted on rigid rods or wires I4 depending from shelf member i l .and rmly xed thereto. It will be noted (see Fig. 1) that the lower portions of such wicks are immersed in the oil bath 5. Rods or wires I4 with wicks I3 thereon are arranged in a series Vof Fig. 1.

of concentric circles with the wicks of one circle offset relative to the wicks of an adjacent circle. Alternatively, such wicks may be simply suspended from member I I without being reinforced by such central rods. Since such wicks are relatively closely spaced one from another, it is evident that air and air-borne dirt entering at the peripheral inlet must follow a tortuous path therebetween before reaching theiaxialiy located outlet provided by tubular member i'after passing between the legs of spider This arrangement causes and allows impingement of air-borne dirt upon the ample surfaces provided -bythe wicks. Since the lower ends of rodsor wires I-I may be caused to bear upon the `bottom ofzreceptacle I, a tight but resilient locking of the assembly is obtained when wing nut .S istightened. To avoid an objectionable whistling sound, boltv' should t the opening `in cover 6 closely and a gasket may be provided.

Referring now to Figs. 3 and 4, a generally similar form of our invention is there illustrated .and like parts are identified by like numerals.

In this embodiment of the invention peripheral flange' and baille I2 are arranged to permit smoother in-fiow of the air. An inner baille I5 with its curved upper lip similarly aids in the out-flow of the cleansed air with a minimum of turbulence and noise. In this form also the receptacle I is shown formed of a metal stamping instead of the transparent or translucent material The wicks I3 are arranged in a manner similar to that illustrated in Fig. 1 but are mounted between two spaced annular members It and Il, thereby forming an annular unit separate vfrom said receptacle and cover but held tightly in position between shelf-member I I and the bottom of the receptacle.

From the foregoing description, the operation and advantages of our new air cleaner are readily discernible. From a structural point of viewsuch cleaner is easily assembled and disassembled merely by turning wing nut S. In the case of the Fig. 1 form, the cover may then be. lifted off carrying the wicks therewith and leaving' the oil reservoir entirely open for cleaning and refilling. Because of the transparent walls of such reservoir, the motorist is able to tell when a new oil Supply is required without iirst disassembling the device.

Since an inlet is provided extending around the periphery of the cleaner, there is no restriction ofrair flow at this point. Batlle i2 first directs the air downwardly toward the surface of the oil bath, causing any large particles of dirt to Vim `pinge upon the surface of such oil and be retained thereby, rather than passing on to be coliected by the wicks. The wicks are saturated Vwith oil from the reservoir and maintain constantly moist oil saturated surfaces to which dirt carried by the passing air adheres. The natural wicking action tends to wash down accumulated dirt into the reservoir for sedimentation and the splashing of oil from the reservoir onto the wicks, as a result of rocking of the engine, further contributes to the washing and self-cleansing action of these wicks. As a result, the wicks do not tend to become clogged with dirt in normal operation and maintain a high degree of effectiveness for a long period of time. Since dirt particles tend to be washed down rather than remaining in situ where collected by such wicks, there is no tendency for subsequent air borne dirt to blast previously deposited foreign matter into the engine. Because `of `the arrangement of the wicks, a relativelyilarge 4 air flow area is afforded, as compared to the usual copper mesh filter, for example, so that a lowered air velocity therethrough is obtained and less tendency to pull-over oil into the carburetor throat. Obviously, the exact spacing of our wick members and the number employed may be varied to obtain any desired characteristics.

Because of the circular arrangement of all elementsit is obvious v.that air entry is still possible around 'the entire circumference of the cleaner even when such cleaner is tilted, as when an automobile in which it is mounted is making axsteep ascent or descent of a hill, the oil in the reservoirseeking its own level.

Another-advantage embodied in the construction of the device of our invention is that a vacuf um isformedzin the chamber between cover 6 and Shelf II located directly above the throat of the carburetor, exercising a very desirable silencing effect.

It will be obvious to thoseskilled inthe art that other materialsmay be used in themanufacture of our new device other than those speciflcally described and illustrated'and also that gases other than air may be cleansed by such device if sodesired.

Furthermore, the utility of the device is V*not limited to the cleansing of air or other' gases that may be passed therethrough, but the device 'may equally well function to impregnate such air or gas with volatile substances, i. epsubstances ('or combinations thereof), which upon being placed in receptacle 5 will saturate the Vwicks and so-be subjected to the evaporative action of the air'or gas, as it passes through the wicks. Another closely related use will be to-recover'gases or other volatile substances by evaporation of same from a liquid vehicle wherein dissolved.

Other modes ofv applying the principle of the invention may be employed, change bcing'madeY as regards the details described, provided the features stated in any of the following claims or the equivalent of such be employed.

We therefore particularly point out and'distinctly claim as our invention: f

1. In a gas cleaning device including an annular oil containing receptacle and a ysubstantially air-tight cover positioned above such receptacle and also spaced therefrom to provide a peripheral inlet for the gas to be cleansed, a plurality of circumferentially disposed, closely spaced but non-contacting tubularwicking baliles extending from suchfcover into such oil, Vand-rigid rods within said tubular wicking baffles adaptedto support VVthe same, whereby a gas passing through 'such container is caused tofollow a tortuous path between said baffles.

2. VIn an air cleaning 'device including an annular oil-containing receptacle and a substantially air-tight cover removably fastened tosuch lreceptacle in spaced relation thereabove'to provide a substantially unobstructed peripheral inlet therebetween for air to be cleansed, a plurality of vertically extending, closely spaced but non-contacting tubular wicking baffles of substantial cross-section vertically depending from such cover in an arrangement of concentrically disposed circles with the wicking baffles ofl one circle'o'ffset relative to the wicking baies of an adjacent circle, and rigid rods within said tubular wicking baffles adapted to support the same, the lower ends of said wicking baflies extending belowthe level Vof such oil and thereby being effective to draw up-oil to moistenthe-vsamepsaid wicking balllesproviding relatively high' narrow passages 5 therebetween unobstructed throughout their vertical extent, whereby a gas passing through such receptacle is caused to follow a tortuous path between said wicking baies.

JULES A. DEMONET.

WILLIAM HOWARD.

REFERENCES CITED Number 6 UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Ludlam Apr. 15, 1930 Runyon Jem. 12, 1932 Walton Sept. 6, 1932 Williams Nov. 8, 1932 Heidbrink June 29, 1937 Glanzer Mar. 21, 1939 Brown May 27, 1941 Burke Mar. 29, 1949 

